Where The Small Voices Stopped

In an ordinary-looking small town, no one has seen a child in twenty years. No school bells ring, no laughter carries through the streets, and no one seems to remember why. When Mara Whitlock arrives to settle her late aunt's estate, she notices something the townsfolk have long stopped questioning: every household keeps the same photograph, hidden in the same drawer, of the same missing children. As Mara digs deeper with the help of a wary local named Ethan Blackwell and a suspicious outsider, Daniel Cross, she uncovers a pact made two decades ago that traded the town's future for its survival. Now something in the woods remembers the bargain, and it wants what it was promised.

Connor Hayes CH writes psychological thrillers and paranormal horror that blur the line between small-town secrets and the supernatural. Drawn to stories about memory, guilt, and what communities choose to forget, Connor crafts atmospheric, character-driven fiction where the real horror often comes from silence rather than monsters. When not writing, Connor can be found exploring forgotten places and collecting strange local legends for inspiration.